Rielle
I didn’t even wait for the elevator doors to close before yanking my phone out and dialing Elise.
She picked on the first ring.
“I know you’ve got some tea,” she said, practically buzzing through the speaker.
Of course she’d been waiting for this call. My first day at a new job? Elise was practically the president of the “Spill All the Gossip” committee.
I pressed the phone tighter to my ear, stepping out into the lobby.
“You won’t believe who my boss is.”
“Oh God. Don’t tell me he’s old. Or has a combover. Or calls women sweetheart.”
“Worse.” I blew out a shaky breath.
“My new boss is the same man I f*cked at Noir.”
There was a second of stunned silence.
“Shut. Up.”
“Not joking,” I muttered, heading for the building doors like I was trying to outrun the chaos in my head.
“Zayden freaking Wolfe.”
“Wait….Zayden Wolfe? Like Wolf Enterprises Zayden Wolfe?”
“Yes.”
“As in, tall, hot, broody, rumored-to-have-a-thing-for-control Zayden Wolfe?”
“Elise.” I stopped walking, eyes wide as the weight of it hit me again.
“I had a one-night stand with my boss.”
“Girl…” Her voice dropped to a whisper.
“You didn’t just walk into a new job. You walked into a whole HBO series.”
Our conversation went on and on until I reached home.
I told her everything, everything except the part where we fucked again.
And that we’d probably do it again.
Because the way my body responded to him? Yeah, that wasn’t a one-time relapse. That was muscle memory.
When the call ended, I tossed my phone onto the couch and headed straight for the kitchen.
Mom had dropped off a plate of jollof rice and grilled chicken earlier.
I opened the foil and smiled to myself. She still treated me like I was sixteen and just got home from school, not a full-grown woman with a job and a complicated sex life.
Microwave beeped.
I stood there barefoot on the cold tiles, arms folded, thinking about the way his hands had held me like he owned me.
Thinking about how wrong it was.
And how badly I still wanted it.
One bite into the rice and I knew.. tomorrow was going to be hell.
Especially if he looked at me like that again.
The ringing from my phone interrupted my thoughts.
Mom.
Of course. Probably calling to check in, ask about my first day and whether I’d eaten.
Classic her.
I answered with a small smile, listening to her warm voice ask about everything like she hadn’t just brought food over hours ago.
After we hung up, I went straight to the shower and then bed.
***********
The next morning came too fast..another day to face him.
I stood in front of my mirror, applying just enough makeup to hide the bags under my eyes and add a little color to my lips. Then I pulled on the dress. It was professional, technically. But it hugged every inch of me like a second skin.
Modest enough not to raise eyebrows. Dangerous enough to make him look twice.
And I wanted him to look.
I wasn’t late this time. I walked into the office, heels silent, head high.
Zayden looked up from his desk, and there it was.
That pause.
That flash of surprise that quickly turned into something darker, hotter. The way his eyes swept down my body, lingering, and the twitch of his jaw as he tried to mask it.
The effort I put in this morning hadn’t been in vain.
He was on a call, deep in conversation, his voice low and commanding, the kind that made even me want to obey. His other hand skimmed through notes, prepping for a meeting that was about to start any moment.
Still, I felt it. The tension. The pull.
If he wasn’t on that damn call…
If he wasn’t seconds away from walking into a boardroom…
I’d be on that desk. Legs around his waist. His mouth on my neck, my shoulder, everywhere. Hands gripping, dragging, claiming.
Because that look?
That look said he wanted to ruin me all over again.
And I’d let him.
“Do you need help with them?” I asked, nodding toward the files in his hand.
He didn’t look at me right away, just let out a slow exhale, eyes still fixed on the papers like they were trying to bite him.
“I’ll call you if I need you,” he said. It wasn’t cold. Not like he usually was.
He sounded… tired. Stressed, maybe. Like whatever meeting he was about to walk into wasn’t just business.
After an hour and a few minutes, the office line rang. I snatched it up immediately. There was no way I was getting on his bad side today.
“Bring in the HartTech file. And the updated NDA,” came his voice…calm, clipped, unreadable.
“Alright,” I said, trying to keep my tone neutral as I grabbed the folder from my desk, making sure everything was in order.
I made my way to the conference room, heels clicking softly against the marble floor. I braced myself, assuming I’d walk into a room full of senior partners and uptight board members.
But when I pushed the door open, only two men turned toward me.
And one of them…
HOLY SHIT! I almost cursed out.
For a second, I genuinely thought I was hallucinating. My heart stopped. My brain scrambled.
Seated across from Zayden was none other than Dante Hart.
My ex.
The lying, manipulative bastard I cried oceans for. The man who made me question everything I thought I knew about love.
His eyes lit up with recognition. There was a flicker of surprise..quick and fleeting, then it melted into that smirk. That same smug grin I used to find charming. Now, I wanted to slap it clean off his face.
I stood there frozen, file clutched too tightly in my grip. Rage, fear, disgust, heartbreak… it all came crashing in at once.
Zayden’s eyes flicked from me to Dante, sharp as a blade. He noticed. Of course he did.
But I had a job to do.
I swallowed the lump in my throat, walked over, and handed the file to Zayden without a word.
“Rie,” Dante said, voice low, familiar… too familiar.
My spine stiffened at the nickname. That name only a few people were ever allowed to call me. Not here. Not now.
I inhaled sharply. “Mr. Hart,” I said, keeping my voice professional and cold.
Zayden looked between us. “You two know each other?” he asked, his voice casual, but I knew him enough by now to detect the edge beneath it.
Before Dante could open his filthy mouth, I cut in.
“Old friends,” I said quickly.
Dante let out a soft chuckle. “Just friends?”
That smugness. That tone.
My fists clenched by my sides.
“If that’s all, Mr. Wolf,” I said, looking only at him, my voice clipped, “I’ll get back to my desk.”
“Go ahead,” He said..
Without another word, I made my way out of the room without glancing neither of them a second look.
My heart was racing, my chest burning. All I could think as I walked out was-
Could my life get any more dramatic?
First, I fucked my boss… my emotionally detached, maddeningly hot CEO.
Now?
Now my ex, the manipulative, gaslighting devil I swore I’d never breathe the same air as again! just signed a contract with him.
ZAYDENThe moment Rielle walked out, her scent still lingering like a storm I wasn’t ready to weather, Dante turned to me with a grin that made my fists itch.“You always did have a type,” he said casually, straightening the cuffs of his navy suit like he hadn’t just undressed her with his eyes right in front of me.I didn’t look up from the contract. “Let’s keep it about business.”“Oh, but it is,” he said, tone light but loaded. “You see, I knew her first.”That struck a nerve. But I didn’t flinch. I slowly closed the file and looked up.He smirked.“That woman—Rielle, right? She used to scream my name, you know. Had that same spark in her eyes back then too. Though, she looked a little more… satisfied.”“You done?” I asked, voice low, steady. Ice under heat.“I’m just saying,” he leaned back, spreading his arms over the chair like he owned the damn room. “You don’t strike me as the kind of man who keeps women. But she’s something, isn’t she? That mouth… those legs…”I stood, slow a
RielleI didn’t even wait for the elevator doors to close before yanking my phone out and dialing Elise.She picked on the first ring.“I know you’ve got some tea,” she said, practically buzzing through the speaker.Of course she’d been waiting for this call. My first day at a new job? Elise was practically the president of the “Spill All the Gossip” committee.I pressed the phone tighter to my ear, stepping out into the lobby.“You won’t believe who my boss is.”“Oh God. Don’t tell me he’s old. Or has a combover. Or calls women sweetheart.”“Worse.” I blew out a shaky breath.“My new boss is the same man I f*cked at Noir.”There was a second of stunned silence.“Shut. Up.”“Not joking,” I muttered, heading for the building doors like I was trying to outrun the chaos in my head.“Zayden freaking Wolfe.”“Wait….Zayden Wolfe? Like Wolf Enterprises Zayden Wolfe?”“Yes.”“As in, tall, hot, broody, rumored-to-have-a-thing-for-control Zayden Wolfe?”“Elise.” I stopped walking, eyes wide as
ZaydenBy the time I was done with her, her legs were shaking.She was still bent over my desk, breath shallow, hands gripping the edges like she needed the wood to stay grounded. Her blouse hung open, skirt wrinkled around her waist, skin flushed with the heat of what I’d just done to her.I stepped back slowly, tucking myself in, and watched as she tried to gather herself, her body still trembling, her pride barely holding together.And I couldn’t hide the smirk on my face.Because she had walked into my office this morning like a stranger. Like a professional. Like she hadn’t ridden me so hard nights ago I nearly forgot my own name.But now?Now she was a mess, my mess.“Still think it was just a one-night thing?” I asked, voice low, teasing.She turned slowly, fixing her clothes, chin held high even as her legs wobbled. Her hair was tousled, lipstick smudged, and yet she still tried to meet my gaze with that same defiance.“It was supposed to be,” she said, chest still rising and
RielleI snapped at him when he screamed at me. Loud. Sharp. Hot with frustration.Yeah, I knew I was wrong for spilling the damn coffee, but it hadn’t even touched his precious million-dollar documents. I was already reaching to clean it up, already apologizing, and yet, he kept going. Like I’d set the building on fire. Like my clumsiness was a personal attack.Maybe it was.Because somehow, it felt personal.And maybe that’s what pushed me over the edge. The fact that every word out of his mouth wasn’t just laced with anger, but something deeper. Something tighter. His eyes weren’t just annoyed…they burned. Like my presence offended him. Or maybe… tempted him.And all I could think was..Why me?Why the hell did the man who had pinned me against the glass windows of a penthouse suite just days ago, who’d made me come with nothing but his mouth and a goddamn command, why did he have to be my CEO?Plot twist: I’d fucked my boss.Correction: I’d fucked my CEO.And now, just like that ni
Monday morning.My head throbbed like someone was beating drums inside it.And earlier this morning, my dick was hard.She’d shown up again…in my dreams.The girl from Noir.She still hadn’t left a name.The woman from last week. I’d gone back to the club, hoping to find her.I didn’t.The dress. The mouth.The way she took me like she needed to forget the world and let me destroy hers…for a few hours.I hadn’t even gotten her name.Which pissed me off. I wasn’t the one who got left behind.Let alone fucked senseless and ghosted before dawn.Her lipstick was still on my neck when I woke up.She’d vanished.Part of me should’ve been angry.But instead, I was hard.Just the memory of her..her moans, her nails in my skin, the way she came on my cock like she’d waited her whole life for it.Fuck.I hadn’t stopped thinking about her. Not during the drive.Not during the meetings.Not even when I was staring at a million-dollar deal across the boardroom table.No strings. No drama. Just hea
RielleIt started with a dare. The kind Elise knew I wouldn’t take."You’ve been celibate for eight months and it shows. Your legs are practically crossed in your aura, Rie."I shot her a look but didn’t argue. She wasn’t wrong. After Adrian, I’d sworn off men. My parents had that kind of relationship, the kind that had happy endings in movies and cheesy romance books. The slow dances in the kitchen, the forehead kisses, the arguments that always ended in laughter.I grew up watching what love should look like.And I’ve never..not once..experienced it myself.Not in my 24 years of breathing air on this chaotic Earth.It’s like I was cursed in the romance department. Every guy I gave a chance either left a scar or reminded me why I shouldn’t have bothered at all. I Gave up hoping I’d find something like what my parents share. Maybe love like that doesn’t exist anymore.Or maybe… I’m just the unlucky exception. So yeah… after Dante, I gave up on men.Especially the charming ones. E